Cougars Pick Up First Conference Victory, Defeat No. 12 Stanford

Jeff Reynolds | BYU Athletic Communications | Posted Jan 19, 2000

STANFORD -- After dropping its first match of the season on Tuesday at No. 14 Pacific, the eighth-ranked BYU men's volleyball team (4-1, 1-1) got back to its winning ways on Wednesday, dropping No. 12 Stanford (2-1, 2-1) in three straight games, 15-6, 15-4, 15-11. The win marked the Cougars third three-game victory in their last four matches.

BYU hit over 42 percent at the net against the Cardinal, including a blistering .552 average (19-of-29) in game one. Joaquin Acosta led the Cougar charge with his fifth straight double-digit performance, adding 18 more kills to his team-leading total (91). Acosta is averaging over five kills per game. Senior Casey Jennings added nine kills, while Jaime Mayol and Matt Olsen combined for 15 of the Cougars' 51 total kills.

BYU outblocked its opponent for the fifth straight match of the season, holding the Cardinal to just 11 blocks, while recording 26 on the night. Junior Scott Bunker once again led the Cougars at the net, racking up a match-high 10 blocks. Setter Chris Pitzak and Mayol added four each, while Acosta tallied five blocks and Libero Brad Goldston led the Cougars with 10 digs. All totaled, the BYU defense held Stanford to a 22.4-percent performance at the net, forcing 26 errors on 116 attempts. The Cardinal hit just .148 (21-of-54) in game three. Curt Toppel led the Cardinal with a match-high 21 kills.

BYU will next travel to Hawai'i, taking on the seventh-ranked Rainbows on Friday at 10 p.m. (MST).